(Reuters) -Boeing is exploring the sale of some parts of its space business, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The NASA operations whose sale Boeing is exploring include the troubled Starliner spacecraft and operations that support the International Space Station, but exclude the unit that builds NASA's Space Launch System, the newspaper reported.
Shares of the American aircraft manufacturer rose 0.6% in afternoon trading.
“Boeing does not comment on market rumors or speculation,” the company said in response to a request for comment.
The aerospace company's Starliner spacecraft has been hampered by development delays and technical problems for years, with more than $1.8 billion in private cost overruns.
Two NASA astronauts that Boeing took to the International Space Station remain stuck there and are expected to return in February on a spacecraft from rival SpaceX.
Boeing has been building and maintaining modules for the International Space Station for decades, which will be retired in 2030 and replaced by private space stations under consideration by NASA.
Boeing is also dealing with a five-week strike by 33,000 workers at its civil aircraft manufacturing unit, which has led to a halt in production of its best-selling 737 MAX jets and 767 and 777 widebodies.
The company's new CEO, Kelly Ortberg, has been trying to pull Boeing out of the aircraft manufacturing crisis. During a quarterly earnings call with analysts on Wednesday, Ortberg said he wants Boeing to “do less and do better,” but he did not mention the aerospace unit.
(Reporting by Shivansh Tiwary in Bengaluru and Joey Roulette in Washington; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Rod Nickel)
